Sunday, May 9, 1999 Published at 10:47 GMT 11:47 UKWorld: EuropeUN moves to ease refugee burdenAid agencies say refugees are arriving dehydrated and hungryPreparations are being made to move about 60,000 Kosovo refugees sheltering in Macedonia into neighbouring Albania to ease the burden on the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Government.

Officials in the Macedonian capital, Skopje, say the country has taken in too many refugees since Nato began its air campaign in March.

They have expressed fears the refugee influx could upset the country's ethnic balance and aggravate economic problems.

Last week, the Macedonians decided to close their border with Kosovo, but the Albanian govenrment said it was willing to take in more people and Nato has agreed to build new camps there.

Closure 'unacceptable'

Macedonia says its camps are already overcrowded

The decision met with criticism from the European Union's Humanitarian Aid Commissioner, Emma Bonino who is due to hold talks with the Macedonian Prime Minister, Ljubco Georgievski, on Sunday.

"Even if I understand their political situation and fragility, this is something that from a humanitarian point of view and the Geneva Convention is simply not acceptable," she told reporters in Albania on Saturday.